Yay, I get to create a pic-heavy thread. hehe 

Finally, I’m making time to review this pack…has been a long time coming.
I’m not quite ready for youtube reviews just yet, so please bear with me, I will try and keep things to the point.

Specs, as per website (to whet the appetite):

I’ve had the pack for about 7 months now, using it for the following roles:
– Office / work related carry (15″ Macbook, cables, EDC related items, books, water, light jersey),
– Hiking / climbing bag (Food for 2, hungry cavemen, shell layer, EDC stuff, climbing stuff, bladder etc),
– Range bag (Ammo, holsters, towel, cleaning/spares kit, lunch, fluids, E&OE etc),
– General daypack (used for beach/shopping/day trips in the car etc…so whatever kit matches that).

General thoughts below, including pictures:

1. Harness:
So, it looks pretty decent; well padded & resembles what a good harness should have. The waist belt is contoured and has load/compression straps which when tightened, pull the pack towards your back. Dual adjustable buckle with elastic keepers enables you to keep the buckle central & ends tidy. This setup is good, but for taller users the belt doesn’t sit where it should (3/4 up the iliac crest), making it useless for what it is designed for. The waist belt is removable btw, which is nice for most of the uses I had it for, except hiking.

The shoulder straps are not contoured, nor are they long enough for taller users. So when all is cinched up, the sternum strap sits too high for comfort (that said, it has a neat little logo attached. lol). The little strips of webbing are handy for clipping bits onto – Some are elastic, which is nice for the hydration tube.

The load-lifter straps are a nice addition, but can’t be used to their full capacity due to the length of the harness…again, more suited to shorter users. At the extreme, taller people (I’m 6ft) will have no use for these / they will be useless (bearing in mind, they should be at around 45′ to your shoulder…and have the ability to be tightened for downhill travel, and loosened for uphill).

Breathability is okay, bearing in mind there is no ‘mesh-like’ material covering; which is good for durability, but bad for breathability. The pads do create ‘channels’ along which air can flow, so the sweat patches won’t be as bad in those areas 

There is a single, aluminium / aluminum stay, down the centre of the harness (accessible from inside the ‘hydration’ pocket). Not enough in my humble opinion…it keeps the bag upright, but doesn’t stop the back panel from becoming convex against your back when the pack is fully loaded. This in mind, the bladder pocket is directly against your back; so you have a 3l/100oz ‘bulge’ working against the shape of your back. If you fit a laptop or something in there, then it stays pretty rigid, but ‘flat’ as opposed to contoured against your back.

2. Exterior front:
Two, outside pockets – one for admin type stuff (top pocket, with a vertical, zippered compartment) and one for extras that aren’t kept inside the main pack (lower pocket).
MOLLE & loop field on the lower, bigger pocket. The loop field is sewn directly onto the bag, as opposed to being usable for MOLLE attachments.

Zips are all YKK & have paracord pull-tabs. They need guidance, as opposed to always sliding nicely, but they never caught, snagged or matched unevenly.

The lower pocket, when full is a little close to the upper pocket for comfortable use. It just means you have to pull the top pocket up when unzipping/accessing the lower one. Not a biggy.

Stitching is nothing to write home about, but isn’t bad for the price of the pack.

…To be continued…hope you’re enjoying so far